Billingshurst resident Neil Richards and his children, twins Oliver and Gemma Boultwood, aged ten, were at the planetarium for its show, A Tour of the Planets.

They were welcomed by principal lecturer and founding trustee John Mason. Mr Richards was pleasantly surprised to receive an encyclopedia of astronomy and a special certificate signed by Sir Patrick Moore, who is a huge supporter of the centre.

Trustee John Green said it was great news. "It has been a long struggle, since its inception in 1994 to its eventual opening in 2001.

"We have been open for coming up to eight years and we have been building up visitor numbers and we are now hitting about 15,000 per year.

"We still come across people who don't know there is a planetarium in Chichester, but knowledge is spreading and it's really by word of mouth.

"We get about 120 schools from across West Sussex each year and we are getting more and more visitors which is great. It's a wonderful facility to have in Chichester, not many places have something like this."

For more information about the planetarium call 01243 774400 or see www.southdowns.org.uk


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